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Iermansc 1.0
=Introduction= Iermánsc is a Romance language which developed in an alternate timeline in which the Romans conquered the area we know as southern Germany in the first century A.D. The subsequent Romanized German culture lasted long after the breakdown of the Empire several centuries later. The language has a strong family relationship to Romansh, Venetian, and Old French (its closest Romance neighbors), with a sense of phonological, lexical and grammatical flavor from Old High German. One major repercussion of extensive long-term contact between Germanic and Romance is that the language has radically shifted towards the use of simplified grammatical particles and endings at the expense of rich inflected forms inherited from Latin. Please note that this is a work in progress. Name The name "Iermánsc" is cognate with our word German, from GERMĀNĬCE. It evolved through Old Iermánsc /ʒer.mɔnʧe/ into the modern from /jɛr.mɔnʃ/. =Phonology= There are 8 vowel sounds / i u e ǝ o ɛ ɔ a / and 20 consonants / p b t d k g f v θ ð s x ʃ ʧ m n l w j r / including the semivowels /w/ and /j/. =Orthography= The alphabet consists of 21 letters, developed from the Roman alphabet with the addition of two runic letters: Aa Bb Cc Dd Ðð Ee Ff Gg Hh Ii Ll Mm Nn Oo Pp Rr Ss Tt Þþ Uu Vv The vowels can also be marked for irregular syllabic stress. All words are stressed on the first syllable unless otherwise marked. The stressed vowels are marked á é í ó ú. The above graphemes represent the following sounds: a /a/ in most cases, /ɔ/ before a nasal, /ǝ/ in unstressed final syllables au /ɔ/ b /b/ c /k/ in most cases, /ʧ/ before e or i d /d/ ð /ð/ e /e/ or /ɛ/, /ǝ/ in unstressed final syllables, le and ne f /f/ g /g/ h /x/ i /i/ in most cases, /j/ when in combination with another vowel l /l/ m /m/ n /n/ in most cases, /ŋ/ before g o /o/ or /ɔ/ p /p/ r /r/ s /s/ in most cases, /ʃ/ before p or t sc /ʃ/ sch /ʃk/ t /t/ þ /θ/ u /u/ in most cases, /w/ in combination with another vowel v /v/ =Grammar= Articles There are three definite articles: il (m.sg.), la (f.sg.) and le (pl.) and three corresponding indefinite articles in, na and ne. The feminine and plural articles may elide to l' and n', respectively, before vowels (though not before i and u as /j/ and /w/). The sequences de il and de in are shortened to dil and din. il han "the dog" /il xɔn/ le hane "the dogs" /lǝ xɔnǝ/ l'ahua "the water" /laxwǝ/ l'ahue "the waters" /laxwǝ/ na iata "a cat" /na jatǝ/ ne iate "some cats" /nǝ jatǝ/ in om "a man" /in om/ n'one "some men" /nonǝ/ dil han "of the dog" /dil xɔn/ din om "of a man" /din om/ Nouns Nouns come in two genders, masculine and singular. Most masculine nouns end in a consonant and add -e in the plural. Most feminine nouns end in -a in singular and -e in the plural. il dent "the tooth" /il dɛnt/ le dente "the teeth"/lǝ dɛntǝ/ na stela "a star" /na ʃtelǝ/ ne stele "some stars" /nǝ ʃtelǝ/ There are some complications, however. There are many alternations in both consonants and vowels between certain masculine plurals. The most common consonant changes are that singular final f þ h become v ð i (/j/) in the plural. The common vowel alternations are o u become e i in the plural. The following examples have one of each kind. in foh "a fire" /in fox/ ne feie "some fires" /nǝ fejǝ/ il luf "the wolf" /il luf/ le live "the wolves" /lǝ livǝ/ Some singular words also alternate the final vowel and consonant. il proveþ "the prophet" /il provǝθ/ le provðe "the prophets" /lǝ provðǝ/ in amih "a friend" /in ɔmix/ n'amie "some friends" /nɔmjǝ/ il iuven "the boy" /il juvǝn/ le iuvne "the boys" /lǝ juvnǝ/ There are also some completely irregular nouns which don’t obey the general rules. la man "the hand" /la mɔn/ (f. irregular singular) le mane "the hands" /lǝ mɔnǝ/ in om "a man" /in om/ n’one "some men" /nonǝ/ (m. irregular plural) Pronouns Personal Pronouns There are eight subject pronouns. iu "I" /ju/ ti "you" /ti/ el "he" /el/ ela "her" /elǝ/ nu "we" /nu/ vu "y'all/you (formal sg.)" /vu/ ele "they" /elǝ/ in "one" /in/ There are seven direct object pronouns. me "me" /me/ te "you" /te/ le "him/it/they" /le/ la "her/it" /la/ se "him/her/their self/selves" /se/ nu "us" /nu/ vu "y'all/you (formal sg.)" /vu/ And four indirect object pronouns. mi "to me" /mi/ ti "to you" /ti/ li "to him/her" /li/ le "to them" /lǝ/ Possessive Pronouns Each of the five possessive pronouns has a form for m.sg., f.sg., and pl. mun "my" /mun/ mia "my" /mja/ mie "my" /mje/ tun "your" /tun/ tua "your" /twa/ tue "your" /twe/ sun "his/her/its/their" /sun/ sua "his/her/its/their" /swa/ sue "his/her/its/their" /swe/ nuster "our" /nuʃtǝr/ nustra "our" /nuʃtrǝ/ nustre "our" /nuʃtrǝ/ vuster "y'all's" /vuʃtǝr/ vustra "y'all's" /vuʃtrǝ/ vustre "y'all's" /vuʃtrǝ/ Demonstrative Pronouns There are two demonstrative pronuns. huest "this" /xwɛʃt/ huesta "this" /xwɛʃtǝ/ hueste "this" /xwɛʃtǝ/ huel "that" /xwel/ huela "that" /xwelǝ/ huele "that" /xwelǝ/ Interrogative Pronouns hui "who" /xwi/ de hui "whose" /de xwi/ hue "what" /xwe/ por hue "why" /por xwe/ huant "when" /xwɔnt/ come "how" /komǝ/ huante "how much" /xwɔntǝ/ hual "which" /xwal/ Adjectives Adjectives differ in how they agree with nouns. Some adjectives have distinct forms for all four number/gender combinations. il nof asen "the new donkey" /il nof asǝn/ le neve asne "the new donkeys" /lǝ nevǝ asnǝ/ la nova havra "the new goat" /la novǝ xavrǝ/ le nove havre "the new goats" /lǝ novǝ xavrǝ/ Others distinguish only m.sg., f.sg. and pl. in grant om "a big man" /in grɔnd om/ ne grande one "some big men" /nǝ grɔndǝ onǝ/ na granda fiena "a big woman" /na grɔndǝ fjɛnǝ/ ne grande fiene "some big women" /nǝ grɔndǝ fjɛnǝ/ il blau ciel "the blue sky" /il blɔ ʧjɛl/ le blaue ciele "the blue skies" /lǝ blɔwǝ ʧjɛlǝ/ la blaua ahua "the blue water" /la blɔwǝ axwǝ/ le blaue ahue "the blue waters" /lǝ blɔǝ axwǝ/ in fort iuven "a strong boy" /in fort juvǝn/ na forða iuvna "a strong girl" /na forta juvnǝ/ ne forðe iuvne "some strong children" /nǝ forðǝ juvnǝ/ Comparison Regular comparison is with mai. grant "big" /grɔnd/ mai grant hue "bigger than" /maj grɔnd xwe/ il mai grant "biggest" /il maj grɔnd/ pausc "small" /pɔʃ/ mai pausc hue "smaller than" /maj pɔʃ/ il mai pausc "smallest" /il maj pɔʃ/ Bon and mal have irregular comparatives. bon "good" /bon/ liur "better" /ljur/ il liur "best" /il ljur/ mal "bad" /mal/ piur "worse" /pjur/ il piur "worst" /il pjur/ Prepositions Note the preposition for "to" has two forms, the first before consonants and the other before vowels. a/að "to" /a að/ abasc "below/downstairs" /abǝsc/ contra "against" /kontrǝ/ cun "with" /kun/ davant "in front of" /davǝnt/ de "from" /de/ destra "right" /deʃtrǝ/ entre "between" /entrǝ/ en "in" /en/ en hasa "at home" /en xasǝ/ sen "without" /sen/ senstra "left" /senʃtrǝ/ sur "on/over" /sur/ Conjunctions e "and" /e/ o "or" /o/ ma "but" /ma/ si "if" /si/ hue "that, which" /xwe/ Numbers The cardinal numbers are as follows. nil "zero" /nil/ in ina "one" /in inǝ/ du "two" /du/ tre "three" /tre/ huat "four" /xwat/ huensc "five" /xwɛnʃ/ sesc "six" /seʃ/ seþ "seven" /seθ/ oht "eight" /oxt/ nof "nine" /nof/ desc "ten" /deʃ/ indesc "eleven" /indeʃ/ dudesc "twelve" /duðeʃ/ tredesc "thirteen" /treðeʃ/ huadesc "fourteen" /xwaðeʃ/ huendesc "fifteen" /xwendeʃ/ seðesc "sixteen" /sedeʃ/ seþ e desc "seventeen" /seθ e deʃ/ oht e desc "eighteen" /oxt e deʃ/ nof e desc "nineteen" /nof e deʃ/ vente "twenty" /ventǝ/ in e vente "twenty-one" /in e ventǝ/ du e vente "twenty-two" /du e ventǝ/ trenta "thirty" /trentǝ/ huaðránta "fourty" /xwað.rantǝ/ huenénta "fifty" /xwen.entǝ/ sescánta "sixty" /se.ʃantǝ/ seðánta "seventy" /seð.antǝ/ ohtónta "eighty" /oxt.ontǝ/ nonánta "ninety" /non.ontǝ/ cent "one hundred" /ʧɛnt/ du cente "two hundred" /du ʧɛntǝ/ tre cente "three hundred" /tre ʧɛntǝ/ huat cente "four hundred" /xwat ʧɛntǝ/ mil "one thousand" /mil/ du mil tre cente seþ e vente "two thousand three hundred twenty-seven" /du mil tre ʧɛntǝ seθ e ventǝ/ The ordinal numbers are irregular through ten and completely regularly formed from the cardinals thereafter. prem prema "first" /prem premǝ/ siunt "second" /sjunt/ tersc "third" /terʃ/ huart "fourth" /xwart/ huent "fifth" /xwent/ sest "sixth" /seʃt/ seten "sevent" /setǝn/ ohtaf "eigth" /oxtǝf/ non "ninth" /non/ deim "tenth" /dejm/ indescen "eleventh" /indeʃǝn/ venten "twentieth" /ventǝn/ oht e nonántan "ninety eighth" /oxt e non.antǝn/ Verbs Regular Verbs Infinitives consist of a stressed stem plus a thematic vowel, a or e, which determine the two main conjugation classes. The present participle/gerund is formed by adding nt to the stem and stressing the final vowel. The past participle is formed by adding þ to the infinitive. The imperative singular is formed by stressing the final vowel. The imperative plural is formed by stressing the final vowel and adding þ. a hanta "to sing" /a xɔntǝ/ hantánt "singing" /xɔnt.ant/ hantaþ "sung" /xɔntǝθ/ hantá "sing!" /xɔnt.a/ hantáþ "sing! (pl)" /xɔnt.aθ/ a save "to know" /a savǝ/ savént "knowing" /sav.ent/ saveþ "known" /savǝθ/ savé "know!" /a sav.e/ savéþ "know! (pl)" /sav.eθ/ Simple Present Most verbs are extremely regular in the simple present, though the first person singular often ends with a different consonant than the stem. iu hant "i sing" /ju xɔnt/ ti hanta "you sing" /ti xɔntǝ/ el hanta "he sings" /el xɔntǝ/ nu hantan "we sing" /nu xɔntǝn/ vu hantaþ "y'all/you sing" /xɔntǝθ/ ele hantan "they sing" /elǝ xɔntǝn/ iu saf "I know" /ju saf/ ti save "you know" /ti savǝ/ el save "he knows" /el savǝ/ nu saven "we know" /nu savǝn/ vu saveþ "y'all know" /vu savǝθ/ el saven "they know" /el savǝn/ Present Continuous The present continuous is formed with sta + Present Participle. nu stan hantánt "we are singing" /nu ʃta xɔnt.ant/ ele stan hantánt "they are singing" /elǝ ʃtan xɔnt.ant/ ela sta savént "she is knowing" /elǝ ʃta sav.ent/ ti sta savént "you are knowing" /ti ʃta sav.ǝnt/ Simple Past The simple past often changes the stress to the thematic syllable, and uses a different set of endings than the simple present. iu hantá "i sang" /ju xɔn.ta/ ti hantásc "you sang" /ti xɔn.taʃ/ el hantá "he sang" /el xɔn.ta/ nu hantán "we sang" /nu xɔn.tan/ vu hantásc "y'all sang" /vu xɔn.taʃ/ ele hantán "they sang" /elə xɔn.tan/ iu savé "i knew" /ju sa.ve/ ti savésc "you knew" /ti sa.veʃ/ el savé "he knew" /el sa.ve/ nu savén "we knew" /nu sa.ven/ vu savésc "y'all knew" /vu sa.veʃ/ ele savén "they knew" /elə sa.ven/ Sometimes, the simple past changes in the stem: a dice "to say" /a diʧə/ iu disc "i say" /ju diʃ/ ti dice "you say" /ti diʧə/ el dice "he says" /el diʧə/ iu discé "i said" /iu di.ʃe/ ti discésc "you said" /diʃ.eʃ/ nu discén "she said" /di.ʃen/ Perfect Form the perfect with the present form of ave + Past Participle. ti af hantaþ "you have sung" /ti af xɔntəθ/ ela af hantaþ "she has sung" /elə af xɔntəθ/ iu af saveþ "i have known" /ju af savəθ/ nu aven saveþ "we have known" /nu avən savəθ/ Pluperfect Form the pluperfect tense with the past of ave + Past Participle. vu avésc hantaþ "y'all had sung" /ti av.eʃ xɔntəθ/ ele avén hantaþ "they had sung" /elə av.en xɔntəθ/ iu avé saveþ "i had known" /ju av.e savəθ/ nu avén saveþ "we had known" /nu av.en savəθ/ Future Form the future with the present form of vole + Infinitive. nu volen hanta "we will sing" /nu volǝn xɔntǝ/ vu voleþ hanta "ya'll will sing" /vu volǝθ xɔntǝ/ iu vel save "i will know" /iu vel savǝ/ ti vol save "you will know" /ti vol savǝ/ Future Perfect Form the future perfect with vole + ave + Past Participle. nu volen ave hantaþ "we will have sung" /nu volǝn avǝ xɔntǝþ/ ele volen ave hantaþ "they will have sung" /elǝ volǝn ave xɔntǝþ/ ela vol ave saveþ "she will have known" /elǝ vol avǝ savǝþ/ ti vol ave saveþ "you will have known" /ti vol avǝ savǝþ/ Subjunctive A-class and E-class verb subjunctives are highly regular. iu hantáse "may i sing" /ju xɔn.tasə/ ti hantáse "may you sang" /ti xɔn.tasə/ el hantáse "may he sang" /el xɔn.tasə/ nu hantásen "may we sang" /nu xɔn.tasən/ vu hantáseþ "may y'all sang" /vu xɔn.tasəθ/ ele hantásen "may they sang" /elə xɔn.tasən/ iu savése "may i knew" /ju sa.vesə/ ti savése "may you knew" /ti sa.vesə/ el savése "may he knew" /el sa.vesə/ nu savésen "may we knew" /nu sa.vesən/ vu savéseþ "may y'all knew" /vu sa.vesəθ/ ele savésen "may they knew" /elə sa.vesən/ Irregular Verbs Some of the most commonly used verbs are irregular. Esce and Sta Esce and sta are both used for "to be". Esce is the usual verb denoting essential qualities. að esce "to be" /að eʃǝ/ esent "being" /esǝnt/ esen "been" /esǝn/ esc "be!" /eʃ/ este "be! (pl.)" /eʃtǝ/ iu sun "i am" /ju sun/ ti esc "you are" /ti e/ ela esc "she is" /el eʃ/ nu sun "we are" /nu sun/ vu esc "y'all are" /vu eʃ/ ele sun "they are" /elə sun/ iu fui "i was" /ju fwi/ ti fuiste "you were" /ti fwiʃtə/ ela fui "she were" /el fwi/ nu fuin "we were" /nu fwin/ vu fuiste "y'all were" /vu fwiʃtə/ ele fuin "they were" /elə fwin/ Sta has connotations of expressing location in time and space, and is also used as an auxiliary. a sta "to be" /a ʃta/ stant "being" /ʃtant/ staþ "been" /ʃtaθ/ sta "be!" /ʃta/ staþ "be! (pl.)" /ʃtaθ/ iu stun "i am" /ju ʃtun/ ti sta "you are" /ti ʃta/ el sta "he is" /el ʃta/ nu stan "we are" /nu ʃtan/ vu staþ "y'all are" /vu ʃtaθ/ ele stan "they are" /elə ʃtan/ iu stai "i was" /ju ʃtaj/ ti stasc "you were" /ti ʃtaʃ/ ela stai "she was" /el ʃtai/ nu stan "we were" /nu ʃtan/ vu stasc "y'all were" /vu ʃtaʃ/ ele stan "they were" /elə ʃtan/ Ave Ave is used as both "to have" and used in tense construction. að ave "to have" /að avǝ/ avént "having" /av.ɛnt/ aveþ "had" /avǝθ/ avé "have!" /av.e/ avéþ "have! (pl)" /av.eθ/ iu af "i have" /ju af/ ti af "you have" /ti af/ el af "he has" /el af/ nu aven "we have" /nu avǝn/ vu aveþ "y'all have" /vu avǝθ/ ele aven "they have" /elǝ avǝn/ iu avé "i had" /ju av.e/ ti avésc "you had" /ti av.eʃ/ ela avé "she had" /elǝ av.e/ nu avén "we had" /nu av.en/ vu avésc "y'all had" /vu av.eʃ/ ele avén "they had" /elǝ av.en/ Vole Vole is used for "to will" and as an auxiliary. a vole "to will" /a volǝ/ volént "willing" /vol.ent/ voleþ "willed" /volǝθ/ volé "will!" /vol.e/ voléþ "will! (pl.)" /vol.eθ/ iu vel "i will" /ju vel/ ti vol "you will" /ti vol/ el vol "he will" /el vol/ nu volen "we will" /nu volǝn/ vu voleþ "y'all will" /vu volǝθ/ ele volen "they will" /elǝ volǝn/ iu volé "i willed" /iu vol.e/ ti volésc "you willed" /ti vol.eʃ/ el volé "he willed" /el vol.e/ nu volén "we willed" /nu vol.en/ vu volésc "y'all willed" /vu vol.eʃ/ ele volén "they willed" /elǝ vol.ern/ Da Da is a common irregular verb. a da "to give" /a da/ dant "giving" /dɔnt/ daþ "given" /daθ/ da "give!" /da/ daþ "give! (pl.)" /daθ/ iu dun "i give" /ju dun/ ti da "you give" /ti da/ el da "he gives" /el da/ nu dan "we give" /nu dan/ vi daþ "y'all give" /vi daθ/ ele dun "they give" /elǝ dun/ iu deðe "i gave" /ju deðǝ/ ti deðesc "you gave" /ti deðǝʃ/ ela deðe "she gave" /elǝ deðǝ/ nu deðen "we gave" /nu deðǝn/ vu deðesc "y'all gave" /vu deðǝʃ/ ele deðen "they gave" /elǝ deðǝn/ =Vocabulary= Comparison with other Romance languages =Sample Texts= The Tower of Babel Il Tur de Bavel From Genesis 11:1-9 (translation in progress). 1. Now the whole world had one language and a common speech. Toþ il munt avén ina lengua e na comna pravla. /toθ il munt a.ven inǝ lengwǝ e na comnǝ pravlǝ/ the world had one language and one common speaking 2. As men moved eastward, they found a plain in Shinar and settled there. Miránt est, l’one truván in hamp en Scinar e alá stavlén ele se. /mir.ant eʃt, in xɔmp en ʃinar tru.van lonǝ e a.la ʃtav.len elǝ se/ east, the people found a plain in Shinar and there settled they themselves 3. They said to each other, "Come, let's make bricks and bake them thoroughly." They used brick instead of stone, and tar for mortar. Ele discén l’in a l’alter, “Venéþ, maðen facésen nu e cun foh cocésen. /elǝ di.ʃen lin a laltǝr, ven.eθ, maðǝn fa.ʧesǝn e kun fox co.ʧesǝn/ said the one to the the other, “come, bricks let’s-make we and with fire let’s-cook.” Ele usán maþ en loial de peðra, e beðun de cemént. /elǝ us.an maθ en lojǝl de peðrǝ, e beðǝn de ʧem.ent/ used brick in place of stone, and tar of mortar 4. Then they said, "Come, let us build ourselves a city, with a tower that reaches to the heavens, so that we may make a name for ourselves and not be scattered over the face of the whole earth." E ele discén, "Venéþ, na ciuðaþ struhtásen nu, cun in tur hue a le ciele traie, /e elǝ di.ʃen, ven.eθ na ʧjuðǝθ ʃtrux.tasǝn nu, kun in tur xue a lǝ ʧjɛlǝ trajǝ/ they said, “come, a city let’s build we, with a tower that to the heavens reaches por in num a face nu, e no a sta dispérsaþ sur il vult dil munt." /por in num a faʧǝ nu, e no a ʃta diʃ.persǝθ sur il vult dil munt/ a name to make us, and not to be dispersed over the face of-the earth 5. But the Lord came down to see the city and the tower that the men were building. Ma il Diu scendé por la ciuðaþ a veðe, e il tur hue l’one struhtánt stan. /ma il dju ʃen.de por la ʧjuðǝθ a veðǝ e il tur xwe lonǝ ʃtrux.tant ʃtan/ the Lord came-down for the city to see, and the tower that the men constructing were 6. The Lord said, "As one people speaking the same language they have begun to do this, and nothing they plan to do will be impossible for them. Il Diu discé, “Come in povul pravlan ele la meðma lengua, ele ave enieht a face huest, /il dju di.ʃe, komǝ in povǝl pravlǝn elǝ la meðmǝ lɛŋwǝ, elǝ avǝ enjɛht a faʧǝ xwɛʃt/ Lord said, as one people speak they the same language, they have begun to do this e neint hue ele a face volen vol emsivel sta por le. /e nejnt xwe elǝ a faʧǝ volǝn vol ʃta ɛmsivǝl por le/ nothing that they to do want will impossible be for them 7. Come, let us go down and confuse their language so they will not understand each other." Venéþ, scendésen nu e cunfúndsen sua lengua por hue ele l'in l'alter no volen enténda." /ven.eθ, ʃɛn.desǝn nu e kun.fundsǝn swa lengwǝ por hue elǝ lin laltǝr no volǝn en.tendǝ/ let's go-down us and let's-confuse their language for that the-one the-other no will understand =Derivation from Latin= Phonological Development Vowels which were stressed in Latin tended to develop similarly to the Western Romance varieties. Ī > /i/ Ē,I > /e/ E > /ɛ/ A,Ā > /a/ O > /ɔ/ Ō,U > /o/ Ū > /u/ OE > /e/ AE > /ɛ/ AU > /aw/ /i/ > /e/ before a nasal /e/ > /ɛ/ before a consonant cluster /ɛ/ > /jɛ/ sporadically in open syllables /o/ > /u/ /u/ > /y/ The umlaut process started after these changes. /u/ > /y/ before /i/ or /j/ in the next syllable /o/ > /ø/ before /i/ or /j/ in the next syllable /ɔ/ > /æ/ before /i/ or /j/ in the next syllable Followed shortly by unrounding of front-rounded vowels and other changes. /y/ > /i/ /ø/ > /e/ /æ/ > /ɛ/ /a/ > /ɔ/ before a nasal /aw/ > /ɔ/ Final vowels other than /a/ and /i/ are lost. Final /a/ > /ǝ/ Final /i/ > /e/ > /ǝ/ Final consonants / m,s,t / are lost. There were some general consonant changes. /kt/ > /xt/ /mn/ > /n/ or /m/ depending on stress /ns/ > /s/ /kw/ > /xw/ initially and /k/ elsewhere (but /xw/ here as well in some common words) /ks/ > /ʃ/ /CH/ > /k/ /sk/ > /ʃ/ or /ʃk/ /st/ > /ʃt/ /sp/ > /ʃp/ Lenition happens between vowels or between a vowel and /r/: C,G > /ɣ/ P,B,F > /v/ T,D > /ð/ Double or "geminate" consonants are reduced to a single consonant. Notably, reflexes of geminates do not undergo the above lenition process (i.e. GATTUM /jat/, not /*jaθ/). There is also a palatalization process. /t/ > /ʧ/ before /j/ /k/ > /ʧ/ before a front vowel or /j/ /g/ > /ʒ/ before a front vowel or /j/ Later, /k g/ > /x/ before /a/ /ʒ/ > /j/ Final consonants have a strong tendenacy to devoice: /b/ > /p/ /d/ > /t/ /ɣ/ > /h/ /v/ > /f/ /ð/ > /θ/ /ʧ/ > /ʃ/ Between vowels, /ɣ/ > /j/ mostly, sometimes /i/ or lost altogether Category:Languages Morphological Development Articles developed as reflexes of ILLE,ILLI,ILLA,ILLE and ŪNU,ŪNI,ŪNA,ŪNE. Nouns underwent a shift of stress to the first syllable, shortening words and often obliterating multiple syllables in longer words. The accusative singular and nominative plural form the bases for most words. Historically the final /e/ of the feminine plural would've been lost, but it was retained analogically to the masculine plural, and later reduced to schwa along with most final vowels. The Latin nominative plural ending I > /ǝ/ became generalized on the vast majority of nouns, yielding some novel forms. LUPUM > il luf /il luf/ "the wolf" LUPI > le live /lǝ livǝ/ "the wolves" NOCTEM > la noht /la noxt/ "the night" *NOCTI > le nohte /lǝ noxtǝ/ "the nights" FEMINA > la fiena /la fjenǝ/ "the woman" *FEMINI > le fiene /lǝ fjenǝ/ "the women" Though the analytic verbal system was reduced greatly from Latin, the imperative, present perfect, past simple and subjunctive all feature intact ancestral stress patterns. In the present simple, past perfect and the infinitive all stress shifts to the first syllable. The R of the Latin infinitive has been lost entirely.